No Limit Texas Holdem -The Importance of Short handed Sets

The basic fact about pre-flop starting hands in short handed short-handed
No-Limit Hold'em is that the set is crucial. There set is the key to winning
that pot!

The Secret of the Set

Many players take years to learn about the power of sets in
short-handed No-Limit. Sets, which simply mean three-of-a-kind, seem
mysterious since they are very hard to hit and difficult to pick up on
when your opponent is holding them. Perhaps one in eight hands where
you are holding a pair will provide you that third card to hit a set
on the flop.

Sets are money hands. The reason is that if you are holding a pair
in the hole, your opponents won't read you as holding a set. That
pair in the hold can be your ticket to taking the pot at the short-handed
No-Limit Hold'em table.

Set Pull In Big Pots

Sets earn the money in short-handed No-Limit Hold'em.
Aces, Kings, it doesn't matter what else is showing if you
hold that all important set. Sure, it is nice if your set happens
to be a set of Aces, but a pair of Aces sinks to any set of any kind.
If you are holding a pair, it's a good idea to bet. When you hit that
set, go high or even all-in and take the pot!

If you call a pre-flop raise of $20 when you and another
player are sitting at a table with several hundred dollars
each, and you have a pair, you will not hit that all-important
set most of the time. But when you do make the hit, you can take your
opponent's entire bankroll many times.

Short-handed No-Limit Hold'em is not abot pot odds. Implied
odds are what matter. If your opponent is sitting there
with lots of cash, drawing can be the right thing to do,
even if you are drawing expensively. When you have a set,
it all pays off. If you learn to play those pairs at the short-handed
No-Limit Hold'em tables, you'll hit sets often enough to make it pay
off very well for you.

Fold Pairs When You Don't Hit Sets

If you do not hit the set you were drawing toward, it
is easy to fold the pair. Not much is lost and when you
do hit the set, you have a golden fleece! It really is as
easy as that in the short-handed game.

How to Play Sets

When you have the set, always bet on the flop. Get your
opponent committed to the pot. If you are certain the other
player will bet, check tohim but don't slow-play the hand.
Just play it to your best advantage and take as much money
as possible at the short-handed No-Limit Hold'em table.